Two psychologists from the university of Zurich, Anne Berthold and Willlibald Ruch, set out to see if people who practiced their religion were more satisfied with their lives than those who claim a religious affiliation but don’t practice. They were also testing whether such differences also showed up in people’s kindness, gratitude, forgiveness, and what made people happy. As you might guess, practicing made a big difference. In fact, those who were affiliated with a religion but don’t practice didn’t differ at all from those who weren’t religious. But, like most of these studies, we can’t just take these findings at face value.